Systems and methods for tone to token telecommunications platform

ABSTRACT

Methods and systems are disclosed for enabling the generation of a token corresponding to a tone generated by a telephony system, comprising receiving one or more dual tone multi-frequency (DTMF) tones generated by a telephony system, generating a token based on the one or more DTMF tones; and transmitting the generated token to a merchant system.

FIELD OF DISCLOSURE

The present disclosure relates generally to the field of secure networktransactions and, more particularly, to the conversion of dual tonemulti frequency (DTMF) tones to tokens for secure use of credit carddata in a call center interactive voice response (IVR) setting.

BACKGROUND

Mail order/telephone order (MOTO) processing is increasingly ubiquitous,and merchants often accept payments over phones via a call centerenvironment. Cardholder data is often received by a call center as acustomer reads credit card data to a call center agent, or as a customerenters data through a keypad.

Such a process may be vulnerable to account data compromise, where thedata may be used for fraudulent transactions. For example, call centeragents could record, copy, or compromise cardholder data. Other securityrisks could be introduced by malware on desktop apps that can log keypadentry, for instance, as a call center agent enters received data.Further, as Voice over IP (VoIP) calls gain popularity, VoIP may becomeincreasingly susceptible to security attacks. For example, tools existfor third parties to eavesdrop on VoIP calls. Threats to MOTO IVRoperations may also take the form of information harvesting (e.g.,algorithms that guess cardholder data), injection (e.g., fingerprinting,affecting, or crashing VoiceXML servers supporting IVRs through theinput of spoken words), or crashing/affecting DTMF processing softwarein IVRs. Consequently, merchants are under pressure to be in PaymentCard Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) compliance, even as PCIcompliance requirements increase in scope.

Meanwhile, security features are continually being developed. Forexample, “tokenization” is a means for replacing sensitive data with a“token” of data that may be non-decryptable or non-detokenizable by themerchant or other tokenization users (e.g., because they require thirdparty decryption). Merchants, for example, might not ever storesensitive data themselves, thus enhancing data security.

Thus, a desire exists to remove cardholder data from call centerenvironments, including call recording systems, agents, and desktopapplications. In particular, DTMF tones may pose a security risk in thatthey align to a frequency standard, meaning, each tone corresponds to aspecific and finite number that can be quickly reverse engineered backto clear text. Attackers can determine clear cardholder data simply viaaccess to DTMF tones associated with the underlying cardholder data.Accordingly, a desire exists to remove DTMF data from call centerenvironments. A desire may further exist to remove DTMF data frommerchant Card Data Environments (CDE). A solution is needed that willsecure DTMF tone input and provide secure transmission of cardholderdata, while maintaining customer-agent interaction and expedience in acall center workflow.

SUMMARY

Included are embodiments of a computer-implemented method for tokenizingsensitive data. Some embodiments of a method comprise receiving one ormore dual tone multi-frequency (DTMF) tones generated by a telephonysystem, generating a token based on the one or more DTMF tones; andtransmitting the generated token to a merchant system.

Also included are embodiments of a system. Some embodiments of thesystem include a data storage device storing instructions for enablinggeneration of a token corresponding to a tone generated by a telephonysystem, and a processor configured to execute the instructions toperform a method comprising receiving one or more dual tonemulti-frequency (DTMF) tones generated by a telephony system, generatinga token based on the one or more DTMF tones; and transmitting thegenerated token to a merchant system.

Also included are embodiments of a computer-readable medium. Someembodiments of the computer-readable medium include a non-transitorycomputer-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by atransaction processor, cause the transaction processor to perform amethod for generation of a token corresponding to a tone generated by atelephony system, the method comprising receiving one or more dual tonemulti-frequency (DTMF) tones generated by a telephony system, generatinga token based on the one or more DTMF tones; and transmitting thegenerated token to a merchant system.

Other embodiments and/or advantages of this disclosure will be or maybecome apparent to one with skill in the art upon examination of thefollowing drawings and detailed description. It is intended that allsuch additional systems, methods, features, and advantages be includedwithin this description and be within the scope of the presentdisclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute apart of this specification, illustrate several embodiments and togetherwith the description, serve to explain the principles of the disclosure.

FIG. 1 is an example schematic block diagram of an environment andsystem for tokenization, according to techniques presented herein;

FIG. 2 is an example schematic block diagram of components within thetokenization system and a tone-to-token processor, in accordance withsome embodiments;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a system 300 providing merchantauthorization in a MOTO purchase scenario, in accordance with someembodiments;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a system 400 providing userdevice authorization in a purchase scenario, in accordance with someembodiments; and

FIG. 5 is a flow diagram illustrating a method of performing an IVRtransaction while tokenizing DTMF input, according to techniquespresented herein.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

The present disclosed embodiments will now be described in detail withreference to several examples thereof as illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings. In the following description, numerous specific details areset forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments ofthe present disclosure. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled inthe art, that embodiments may be practiced without some or all of thesespecific details. In other instances, well known process steps and/orstructures have not been described in detail in order to notunnecessarily obscure the present embodiments. The features andadvantages of embodiments may be better understood with reference to thedrawings and discussions that follow.

The following discussion relates to methods and systems for generating atoken corresponding to payment or card information received via DTMFtones. Exemplary payment information may include primary account numbers(PAN), card validation code/value (CVV/CVC), card expiration date, etc.Converting DTMF tones to non-sensitive tokens may increase security forelectronic transactions conducted via call centers or interactive voiceresponse (IVR) services.

In one embodiment, a user or customer may enter cardholder data via anumber keypad on their personal device (e.g., on a phone).Traditionally, the merchant may have collected payment or cardinformation by receiving DTMF signal(s) and determining a numbercorresponding to each received tone. Since security risks may exist ifmerchants have direct access to DTMF tones corresponding to secure data,the present systems and methods may include a platform that interceptsand converts DTMF signals to tokens. In one embodiment, the platform maybe a hosted, third-party platform. The tokens may be transferred to amerchant system within their environment (e.g., a call center), meaninga transaction or payment may be completed without a merchant gainingaccess to DTMF signals or secure data.

It should be appreciated that particular consideration is made herein tocredit card transactions due to the prevalence of these transactions.Despite this reference to credit cards, the disclosed systems andmethods apply equally well to the transfer of any sensitive data, e.g.,personal identification information (PII). Disclosed systems and methodsmay apply, for example, in online transactions in which a user iscorresponding with a merchant via an online call service. Transactionsmay include debit transactions, gift card transactions, smart cardtransactions, mobile application transactions, and the usage of loyaltycards, to name a few. Systems and methods disclosed herein may beemployed in effectively any circumstance in which sensitive data, suchas a personal account number (PAN), social security number, etc., ortoken corresponding thereto, is being transmitted over a network.Further, while the party seeking to initiate a secure transaction may bereferred to herein as a “merchant,” a party seeking to initiate a securetransaction need not be a merchant, and may instead be a serviceprovider, or any party seeking to execute a transaction.

The solution of capturing payment data before the data enters a merchantenvironment may provide risk reduction/PCI scope reduction, whilemaintaining existing business operations. For example, call centeroperations prioritize expedience and ease of use. Providing datasecurity by tokenizing data before the data enters a merchantenvironment may improve security without disrupting the customerexperience, adding additional time, disrupting current call centerprocedures, or introducing difficulty to a call center workflow.

FIG. 1 depicts an environment 100 in which a user 105 employs a userdevice and/or third-party hosted telephony cloud platform 110 totransact with a merchant system 125, by way of a tone-to-token platform120. FIG. 1 also depicts an exemplary tone-to-token platform 120comprising a transaction service 130 and a tokenization service 135. Inone embodiment, tone-to-token platform 120 may intercept data (e.g.,cardholder data) between the user device/telephony cloud platform 110and merchant system 125. Tone-to-token platform 120 may tokenizecardholder data prior to the data reaching the merchant system 125. Thetransfer of data between components of environment 100 may be performedover a telecommunications network, for example, a carrier network, theInternet, any other type of network, or a combination thereof.

In one embodiment, the user device/telephony cloud platform 110 mayinclude any telephony system. A user 105 may interact with a userdevice/telephony cloud platform 110 by voice or by entering numbers viaa keypad. Exemplary user devices may include any telephone, mobiledevice, voice over IP (VoIP) system, etc.). A telephony cloud platformmay include a communication service platform that can control, manage,capture, and analyze mobile communications. In particular, a telephonycloud platform may capture high risk cardholder data so that cardholderdata is not exposed to merchant system 125. In this way, a telephonycloud platform may facilitate merchant PCI DSS compliance. In oneembodiment, the user device/telephony cloud platform 110 may receive thetones (e.g., DTMF) for each of the numbers entered by the user 105. Inone embodiment, the user device/telephony cloud platform 110 may furthertranslate or process DTMF tones. In a further embodiment, userdevice/telephony cloud platform 110 may include a payment applicationfor authorizing and completing payments with tokens in lieu of clearcardholder data.

In the course of the disclosure, “user” may refer to a customer (e.g.,an individual or an entity submitting his/her card information). Otherindividuals interacting in the environment 100 may be referred to as“call center agents” or “agents.”

Merchant system 125 may include any system that stores, processes, ortransmits payment card information, e.g., the CDE. In other words,merchant system 125 may include any type of entities concerned withPayment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS)-compliance, sinceany system in a CDE that touches cardholder data may be in scope for PCIDSS. For example, merchant system 125 may entail one or more merchantcontact centers, including call centers, call center agents, call centerinfrastructure, call recording systems, desktop applications, etc.Merchant system 125 may include an automatic call distributor (ACD)and/or a private branch exchange. Merchant system 125 may useinteractive voice response (IVR), where user 105 may be prompted torespond to commands from merchant system 125 in the form of voice andkeypad (e.g., DTMF) input. Merchant system 125 may further include acustomer relations management module or payment application. In oneembodiment, merchant system 125 may receive data (e.g., voice input orDTMF tone input) through an automatic call distributor/private branchexchange and/or a call center agent interaction with a user. If the datais determined to be non-sensitive, the data may be transferred to acustomer relations management module or payment application.

If the data is sensitive, the customer relations management module mayprompt DTMF suppression at the automatic call distributor/private branchexchange. DTMF suppression may include halting recording of DTMF tones,preventing an agent from hearing DTMF tones, or any method of keepingDTMF tone user input from merchant system 125.

DTMF suppression may either be prompted by a call center agent, orautomatically triggered. For example, a call center agent may promptDTMF tone suppression after prompting a user to enter paymentinformation info a keypad. The tone suppression may be performed by anycomponent of environment 100. Automatic DTMF tone suppression may alsooccur a number of ways. For example, automatic DTMF tone suppression mayoccur upon detection that a user has been prompted to enter paymentinformation, e.g., at a step in a workflow, text recognition, voicerecognition, etc. In another example, automatic DTMF tone suppressionmay occur according to a preset criteria, e.g., a criteria based onentry of DTMF tones. For instance, a typical credit card number may besixteen digits. A criterion for triggering DTMF tone suppression mayinclude initiating DTMF tone suppression after receiving six consecutiveDTMF tones.

In one embodiment, received DTMF tones may correlate to a displayviewable by a call center agent. For example, a customer relationsmanagement module/payment application of merchant system 125 may providea display to a call center agent, in which digits corresponding to DTMFtones are masked or truncated. In this way, the call center agent canremain in communication with a user and follow the user's data entry,while not being exposed to potentially secure data. In one embodiment,the display may be comprised of a web form hosted by the tone-to-tokenplatform 120. In one embodiment, the web for may appear to the agent tobe owned by the merchant while the form is actually hosted or controlledby tone-to-token platform 120 via, for example, an iFrame.

Overall, merchant system 125 may comprise cardholder data environment,in which card data may be used, for example, to process payments.Environment 100 may include the function of converting cardholder datato a token, where merchant system 125 processes payments or transactionsusing the token, rather than cardholder data itself.

In particular, tone-to-token platform 120 may serve as an intermediarybetween a user device/telephony cloud platform 110 and merchant system125. In one embodiment, the tone-to-token platform 120 may tokenizecardholder data and provide the token to the merchant system 125. Thetoken may be, for example, a randomly generated number, a pseudorandomnumber, encrypted information (e.g., in alignment of payment cardindustry (PCI) cryptography standards), a character sequence, etc. Inother words, tone-to-token platform 120 may securely provide sensitivedata to the merchant system 125, without the data being exposed torecording systems, agents, call center environments, or remote agents.In this way, tone-to-token platform 120 may prevent the threat of datatheft before data is sent to a (merchant) acquiring processor. In oneembodiment, tone-to-token platform 120 may include an applicationprogram interface (API) installed on user device/telephony cloudplatform 110. In one embodiment, at no time may the merchant CDE haveaccess to cardholder data.

Exemplary tone-to-token platform 120 may include transaction service 130and tokenization service 135. In one embodiment, transaction service 130may include a plurality of systems for receiving data, dependent upontransmission mechanism and data type. The transaction service 130 maydetermine the initiation of cardholder information transmittal andprompt or verify actions from the merchant system 125. For example,transaction service 130 may prompt suppression of recordings at merchantsystem 125 and/or initiate masking or truncating of displays ofsensitive data or sensitive sub-data elements at merchant system 125.For example, a merchant system display may mask the middle six digits ofa PAN. Alternately, transaction service 130 may receive confirmationfrom merchant system 125 that recording suppression and/or displaymasking/truncating has been initiated. Recording suppression may ensurethat DTMF tones are not accessed by merchant system 125 (e.g., callcenter environments or agents at call centers). At the same time, anagent may remain in contact with a customer and hear a customerspeaking, without hearing DTMF tones. In one case, a call center agentmay trigger “DTMF tone suppression” when he/she is ready to capturepayment information and request a user to enter payment information intoa telephone keypad. In another case, transaction service 130 may promptDTMF tone suppression, e.g., in response to a detection of userinteraction with a keypad or a certain number of strokes entered througha keypad. For instance, transaction service 130 may automaticallytrigger DTMF tone suppression after detecting a series of six keystrokeson a user device keypad.

In one embodiment, transaction service 130 may further control a displaycorresponding to IVR correspondence (e.g., DTMF tone input). Aspreviously discussed, masking or truncating displays may refer toinforming a call center agent that cardholder data is being entered,without exposing the data to the call center agent. For example, eachkeypad stroke may correspond to a symbol (e.g., *) being displayed tothe call center agent to mask an actual character. This means that acall center agent may interact with a user and see the user's progressin entering information, without being able to see the user's cardinformation. Truncating displays may mean that a call center agent maysee a portion, but not all, of the card information. For example, adisplay may include the last four digits of a credit card number or anexpiration date of the card, but not display the entire credit cardnumber. This way, the agent may have enough information to verify auser's card number, but not enough information to fully access theuser's cardholder data.

In one embodiment, tokenization service 135 may receive cardholder datafrom user device/telephony cloud platform 110 and generate a token. Thetoken may include a PAN, an expiration date for the token, an expirationdate for the card, etc. Tokens might also not contain any sensitivedata, but correspond to sensitive identification data, e.g., socialsecurity numbers, account information, cardholder data, or othersensitive financial data. Such sensitive data may be stored securely atthe tone-to-token platform 120 or elsewhere.

In one embodiment, cardholder data may be encrypted. Encryption mayoccur at the user device/telephony cloud platform 110 or at thetone-to-token platform 120. In one embodiment, encryption may be inalignment with strong cryptography best practices and standards.Encryption may occur prior to data reaching the merchant CDE. DTMFtones, numbers corresponding to DTMF tones, or tokens based on DTMFtones may be encrypted. In receiving a token, merchant system 125 maycomplete a transaction using credit card data or other sensitive data,without possessing the actual credit card data or other sensitive data.

In one embodiment, tone-to-token platform 120 may further ensure thevalidity of a request. In one embodiment, tone-to-token platform 120 maysecurely return a transaction response to merchant system 125, alongwith the token generated by the tone-to-token platform 120.

In one embodiment, merchant system 125 may use a high-value token forsubsequent transactions, rather than sending or accessing credit cardinformation or other sensitive data for the subsequent transactions.Such a high-value token may represent PAN. For example, a restaurant mayinitially run a transaction for the cost of a meal, and perform afollow-up transaction using the token for processing the tip.Alternatively, a merchant may run multiple transactions for a recurringweb subscription using one or more tokens. Another example may includerecurring transactions for a gym membership or utility bill. A merchantmay use tokens for returns or price adjustments rather than resendingsensitive transaction information over a network. Using tokenization, amerchant or retailer may enhance security by not storing sensitive dataof customers on its own systems. In one embodiment, tokens may be storedby any components of environment 100, while sensitive data may be storedexclusively within the tone-to-token platform 120.

FIG. 2 is an example schematic block diagram of components within thetokenization system and tone-to-token processor, in accordance with someembodiments. In this example block diagram, interactive voice response(IVR) may be the medium of interaction between a user device 205 and amerchant system 215. For example, an agent or call system at merchantsystem 215 may prompt a user to respond to requests for information,either by voice or by DTMF tones input via a user device 205 keypad. IVRdata 210 may be comprised of the user's responses, for instance, in theform of a voice response or a DTMF tone input. IVR data 210 containingcardholder data may be treated differently from IVR data 210 that doesnot contain cardholder data (e.g., step 220). For example, if the IVRdata 210 comprises cardholder data, the data may be transferred to atone-to-token processor 225 via, for example, a dial-up access connectoror Internet data connection, through which data may pass (e.g., via anetwork socket and/or web service). Any type of data connection may beestablished for data transfer purposes. In one embodiment, IVR data 210may undergo DTMF suppression if it contains cardholder data.

In one embodiment, the tone-to-token processor 225 may tokenize receivedIVR data 210 using tokenization service 230. Analogously to tokenizationservice 135, tokenization service 230 may generate a token from the IVRdata 210, where the IVR data 210 may include a PAN, an expiration datefor the token, and/or an expiration date for the card.

In one embodiment, tokens generated by tokenization service 230 may betransferred to a transaction system 240, e.g., a system that may processpayments. The transaction system 240 may interact with, or be part of,user device 205 or merchant system 215. In one embodiment, sensitive IVRdata may be properly and securely handled either using a connectionencryption or via a public encryption key that may only be decrypted bya third party, hosted platform. IVR data 210 that does not containcardholder data may be transferred directly to merchant system 215 or totransaction system 240, which may be in communication with merchantsystem 215.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a system 300 providing merchantauthorization in a MOTO purchase scenario, according to one embodiment.For example, in system 300, DTMF tones may be tokenized before reachinga merchant system. In one embodiment, user device 301 may interface withtelephony cloud platform 305, comprising a telephony/IVR interface 310and a DTMF translation module 315. In one embodiment, the transactionprocessor 320 may receive sensitive data from the telephony cloudplatform 305 (e.g., the DTMF translation module 315). Exemplarysensitive data may include a personal account number (PAN), a cardverification value (CVV), and/or an expiration date of a credit card,for example, in order to execute an online purchase. The transactionprocessor 320 may include a data security service 325 and a paymentprocessor 330. In one embodiment, the data security service 325 maytokenize and/or encrypt the PAN received from the telephony cloudplatform 305. In one embodiment, the data security service 325 mayprovide a token (e.g., a low-value token) to the telephony cloudplatform 305. The low-value token may be a randomly generated,non-sensitive, registration identifier that acts as a replacement forthe PAN and/or other sensitive data.

A low-value token may be generated dynamically, and may have a uniquevalue for each transaction, even if the same PAN is presented fortokenization multiple times. Low-value tokens may utilize additionalcompensating controls such that the token applies only to specifictransactions and processing environments. A transaction-based tokenvalue may be requested through a low-trust environment over theInternet. This type of process may add security benefits to themerchant, for example, allowing the merchant to avoid man-in-the-middleattack (MiM attacks) over the Internet. For instance, one embodiment mayinclude no authentication for registering a low-value token.Authentication of the low-value token with the merchant may berecognized via a trusted environment. For such an embodiment, themerchant may use a trusted application interfacing with a paymentprocessing platform to authenticate a low-value token. The token valuemight only be valid for 24-hours, or some other pre-determined period oftime, after which it can no longer be used for payment processing.

In one embodiment, the telephony cloud platform 305 may transfer thelow-value token to the merchant system 335, for example, to performauthorization or to convert to a high-value token (e.g., via ano-financial request to be authorized at a later date). For instance,the merchant system 335 may include a payment application 340 forauthorizing and completing payment transactions. The payment application340 may submit an authorization request to the payment processor 330 ofthe transaction processor 320. The payment processor 330 of transactionprocessor 320 may return an authorization response to the merchantsystem 335's payment application 340. In one embodiment, the paymentprocessor 330 may further provide a high-value token to be stored foruse at a later date. For example, once a low-value token is obtained bythe merchant system 335, payment application 340 may contact paymentprocessor 330 with the low-value token and an authorization request.Data security service 325 may convert the received low-value token to ahigh-value token, and the high-value token may be returned to thepayment application 340 by the payment processor 330. In one embodiment,the merchant system 335/payment application 340 may receiveauthentication and interact with payment processor 330, but the merchantsystem 335/payment application 340 cannot interact directly with datasecurity service 325. Such a structure may ensure that the merchantsystem 335/payment application 340 cannot access cardholder data. Themerchant system 335/payment application 340 functionalities may becompleted with tokens, rather than actual cardholder data.

In one embodiment, the high-value token may be stored by paymentprocessor 330 or merchant system 335. The high-value token may be reusedby the merchant for subsequent transactions. While data security service325 and payment processor 330 are depicted as sending and receivingdata, any entity in the transaction processor 320 may interact with thetelephony cloud platform 305 and/or merchant system 335.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a system 400 providing userdevice authorization in a purchase scenario, according to oneembodiment. In system 400, DTMF tones may be tokenized before reaching amerchant system. In one embodiment, user device 401 may interface withtelephony cloud platform 405, comprising a telephony/IVR interface 410,a DTMF translation module 415, and a payment application 417. In oneembodiment, the transaction processor 420 may receive sensitive datafrom the telephony cloud platform 405 (e.g., via the DTMF translationmodule 415). Exemplary sensitive data may include a personal accountnumber (PAN), a card verification value (CVV), and/or an expiration dateof a credit card, for example, in order to execute an online purchase.The transaction processor 420 may include a data security service 425and a payment processor 430. In one embodiment, the data securityservice 425 may tokenize and/or encrypt the PAN received from thetelephony cloud platform 405. In one embodiment, the data securityservice 425 may provide a token (e.g., a low-value token) to thetelephony cloud platform 405. As previously discussed, the low-valuetoken may be a randomly generated, non-sensitive, registrationidentifier that acts as a replacement for the PAN and/or other sensitivedata. The low-value token may be generated dynamically or utilizeadditional compensating controls, like the low-value tokens describedpreviously for FIG. 3.

In one embodiment, the payment processor 425 may obtain a tokenassociated with sensitive data received from the telephony cloudplatform 405. In one embodiment, the payment processor 430 may retrievea high-value token (e.g., upon receipt of a low-value token and/orauthorization request from the payment application 417). This token maybe provided to the telephony cloud platform 405, e.g., the paymentapplication 417. In one embodiment, the high-value token may begenerated by the data security service 425, using the low-value tokenprovided previously by the data security service 425.

In one embodiment, the payment application module 417 may provide anauthorization response to merchant 435, along with a high-value token.For example, the payment application 417 may provide an authorizationresponse to the merchant system 435. In one embodiment, the telephonycloud platform 405 or merchant system 435 may store and/or reuse thehigh-value token for subsequent transactions.

In one embodiment, the merchant system 335 may receive authenticationand interact with payment processor 417 of the telephony cloud platform405, but the merchant system 435 cannot interact directly with datasecurity service 425. Analogously to system 300 of FIG. 3, the merchantsystem 435 may use tokens to complete transactions, rather than actualcardholder data, which may be accessible only to the non-paymentcomponents of the telephony cloud platform 405 (e.g., DTMF translationmodule) and the non-payment components of the transaction processor 420(e.g., data security service 425).

FIG. 5 is a flow diagram illustrating a method of performing an IVRtransaction while tokenizing DTMF input, according to techniquespresented herein. In one embodiment, step 501 may include determiningtransmission of secure/cardholder data. Step 501 may include promptingsuppression of a DTMF tone recording by or at a merchant system. In oneembodiment, step 505 may including prompting a masking (or truncating)of a character display corresponding to the DTMF tone. As previouslydescribed, the display may be a display used by a call center agent. Theagent may remain in contact with the user/customer with no redirects.Further, the agent may hear the customer speaking, but may not hear DTMFtones. Rather the agent may view cardholder data being entered (viaDTMF) by watching his/her display. The display may be generated by astandalone app, or integrated with a payment page, e.g., via an embeddediFrame. In one embodiment, the display and/or masking/truncating of theDTMF tone information may be managed by an entity other than themerchant. For example, any of the previously-described components, e.g.,the user device, telephony platform, transaction processor, ortone-to-token platform may control the display viewable to the agent.

In one embodiment, step 520 may include receiving one or more DTMFtones. The DTMF tones may be entered by a user and received by a cloudplatform, cloud platform API, and/or independent processor. Step 515 mayinclude generating one or more tokens based on the received DTMFtone(s). Step 510 may include outputting the generated token(s) to themerchant system. The generated token(s) may be used to complete orprocess an order. For example, an agent may see the completion ofcardholder data entry via his/her display, and submit an order. In onescenario, the agent may see a portion of the entered data and use theviewable portion to confirm or verify information with the customer.Such viewable portions may help the merchant maintain existingoperations while introducing tokens into their environment.

In one embodiment, authorization may be performed after the DTMF tone(s)are tokenized. Either the merchant or the cloud platform may perform theauthorization. In a trusted environment, high-value tokens may bereturned with an authorization response, for instance, in response toreceiving a low-value token.

Using systems and methods such as those presently described, sensitivedata (e.g., cardholder data) might not be transmitted to the merchant'sservers because DTMF tones may be intercepted and tokenized prior toreaching a merchant. In one embodiment, the tone-to-token platform maybe comprised of an API of a telephony cloud platform. The systems andmethods further introduce a solution to security concerns, withoutinterfering or slowing down business operations. The presently describedsystems and methods permit call center agents to interact withcardholder data via, for example, a token generated from the cardholderdata and/or a display of truncated/masked cardholder data. Inparticular, DTMF tone suppression described in the present disclosuremay permit an agent to hear continually interact and speak to auser/customer, without allowing the agent to hear or record DTMF tones.In this way, the present disclosure may provide call center customerswith increased cardholder data security, while not negatively impactingor delaying cycle time.

Techniques presented herein improve the technical field by, for example,enabling a merchant to comply with the Payment Card Industry DataSecurity Standard (PCI DSS) in a manner that builds value, preservesrisk reduction, enables a cost-effective architecture, and that does notdilute the original value proposition. This allows merchants to processIVR transactions without directly handling cardholder data. The field oftokenization and network security is improved, thus limiting thepotential of a security breach. Further, techniques presented hereinsolve a problem arising in the post-Internet era, namely, for example,providing a telephony cloud platform solution to security gaps in callcenter merchant environments. For example, merchants that process cardnot present (CNP) transactions and mail order/telephone order (MOTO)transactions may face PCI DCC compliance challenges. The techniquespresented herein facilitate PCI DSS compliance by offering anIVR/cloud-hosted solution provider that captures cardholder data.

Embodiments of the present disclosure may relate to computer storageproducts with a computer-readable medium that have computer code thereonfor performing various computer-implemented operations. The media andcomputer code may be those specially designed and constructed for thepurposes of the present disclosure, or they may be of the kind wellknown and available to those having skill in the computer software arts.Examples of computer-readable media include, but are not limited to:magnetic media such as hard disks, floppy disks, and magnetic tape;optical media such as CD-ROMs and holographic devices; magneto-opticalmedia such as optical disks; and hardware devices that are speciallyconfigured to store and execute program code, such asapplication-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), programmable logicdevices (PLDs) and ROM and RAM devices. Examples of computer codeinclude machine code, such as produced by a compiler, and filescontaining higher level code that are executed by a computer using aninterpreter.

While the present disclosure has been described in terms of severalembodiments, there are alterations, modifications, permutations, andsubstitute equivalents, that fall within the scope of this disclosure.

It should also be noted that there are many alternative ways ofimplementing the methods and systems of the present disclosure. It istherefore intended that the following appended claims be interpreted asincluding all such alterations, modifications, permutations, andsubstitute equivalents as fall within the true spirit and scope of thepresent disclosure.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for enabling the generation of a tokencorresponding to a tone generated by a telephony system, the methodcomprising: detecting, by a processor separate from a merchant system, adual tone multi-frequency (DTMF) tone generated by a telephony system;intercepting, by the processor, the detected DTMF tone; tokenizing, bythe processor, the intercepted DTMF tone to create a low-value token;generating, by the processor, a high-value token based on the low-valuetoken, wherein the low-value token applies to one specific transactionand the high-value token applies to multiple transactions; andtransmitting, by the processor, the high-value token to to the merchantsystem to complete a transaction.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein theintercepted DTMF tone corresponds to cardholder data.
 3. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising: prompting processing of a payment ortransaction using the high-value token.
 4. The method of claim 1,further comprising: prompting suppression of DTMF tone recording by themerchant system.
 5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:generating or prompting a display corresponding to the intercepted DTMFtone.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the display includes a masked ortruncated view of one or more characters, each of the one or morecharacters corresponding to the the intercepted DTMF tone.
 7. The methodof claim 1, wherein the low-value token is generated in response todetection of cardholder data.
 8. A system for enabling the generation ofa token corresponding to a tone generated by a telephony system, thesystem comprising: a data storage device storing instructions forenabling the generation of a token corresponding to a tone generated bya telephony system; and a processor configured to execute theinstructions to perform a method comprising: detecting, by a processorseparate from a merchant system, a dual tone multi-frequency (DTMF) tonegenerated by a telephony system; intercepting, by the processor, thedetected DTMF tone; tokenizing, by the processor, the intercepted DTMFtone to create a low-value token; generating, by the processor, ahigh-value token based on the low-value token, wherein the low-valuetoken applies to one specific transaction and the high-value tokenapplies to multiple transactions; and transmitting, by the processor,the high-value token to to the merchant system to complete atransaction.
 9. The system of claim 8, wherein the intercepted DTMF tonecorresponds to cardholder data.
 10. The system of claim 8, furthercomprising: prompting processing of a payment or transaction using thehigh-value token.
 11. The system of claim 8, further comprising:prompting suppression of DTMF tone recording by the merchant system. 12.The system of claim 8, further comprising: generating or prompting adisplay corresponding to the intercepted DTMF tone.
 13. The system ofclaim 8, wherein the display includes a masked or truncated view of oneor more characters, each of the one or more characters corresponding tothe intercepted DTMF tone.
 14. The system of claim 8, wherein thelow-value token is generated in response to detection of cardholderdata.
 15. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructionsthat, when executed by a transaction processor, cause the transactionprocessor to perform a method for enabling the generation of a tokencorresponding to a tone generated by a telephony system, the methodcomprising: detecting, by a processor separate from a merchant system, adual tone multi-frequency (DTMF) tone generated by a telephony system;intercepting, by the processor, the detected DTMF tone; tokenizing, bythe processor, the intercepted DTMF tone to create a low-value token;generating, by the processor, a high-value token based on the low-valuetoken, wherein the low-value token applies to one specific transactionand the high-value token applies to multiple transactions; andtransmitting, by the processor, the high-value token to to the merchantsystem to complete a transaction.
 16. The computer-readable medium ofclaim 15, wherein the intercepted DTMF tone corresponds to cardholderdata.
 17. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, further comprising:prompting processing of a payment or transaction using the high-valuetoken.
 18. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, further comprising:prompting suppression of DTMF tone recording by the merchant system. 19.The computer-readable medium of claim 15, further comprising: generatingor prompting a display corresponding to the intercepted DTMF tone. 20.The computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the display includes amasked or truncated view of one or more characters, each of the one ormore characters corresponding to the intercepted DTMF tone.